title: PINCH expression and its significance in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.
abstract: Particularly interesting new cysteine-histidine rich protein (PINCH), as a newly discovered protein of LIM family members, may play a role in signal transduction of integrin and growth factor, and involved in the incidence and development of tumors. PINCH protein is overexpressed in tumor-associated stroma of several types of tumors. However, there is no study of the PINCH in esophageal cancer, therefore we investigated PINCH expression in esophageal squamous cell carcinomas and its clinicopathological significance in the patients. PINCH expression was immunohistochemically examined in 20 normal esophageal samples and 64 esophageal squamous cell carcinomas. The results showed that PINCH expression in the stroma of cancers was heterogeneous, and its positive rate (56%) was higher than that of normal esophageal mucosa (5%, p<0.0001). The stronger staining was observed at the invasive edge of tumor when compared to the inner area of tumor. The rate of positive PINCH (90%) in the cases with lymph node metastasis was higher than that (41%) in the cases without metastasis (p<0.0001). PINCH expression was not correlated with patients' gender, age, tumor location, size and differentiation (p>0.05). The results suggest that PINCH protein may be a marker of tumor associated-stroma involving tumor development, and predicting the ability of invasion and metastasis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, The First Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, China.
authors.forename: Zhenlong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Yanhong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Zhengmin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Dongsheng
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.forename: Jinting
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Mingwei
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Xiao-Feng
authors.initials: XF
authors.lastname: Sun
mesh_terms: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000378:metabolism*; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000556:secondary; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D018450:Disease Progression; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D004947:Esophagus / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D060588:LIM Domain Proteins; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis
chemical_list: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D060588:LIM Domain Proteins; C088088:LIMS1 protein, human; D008565:Membrane Proteins